Natural
by templeton21
Summary: Ryan thinks and reflects on his relationship with Summer while grocery shopping. [oneshot]


Ryan felt as if he had been standing in the produce section of the grocery store for hours but every time he looked down at the cell phone in his hand, he would see that only a few minutes had passed. He rested his elbows on the cart's bar in front of him and watched as she studied the store's apple selection. She loved fruit. He knew this. And he knew how long it took for her to pick out all of the fruit that she wanted. But every time they went for groceries, he always got impatient when she spent an endless amount of time digging through the bins and searching for the perfect pieces.

He watched her do it with the apples. Picking up each one individually, turning it over in her hands, even smelling it. And then if had passed all of her tests, it would be dropped into the plastic bag before she picked up another, beginning the process over yet again. He could have gone through the entire store and gotten the rest of their grocery shopping done but the one time he had done that, she had been mad at him because of it, saying that this was something they needed to do together. He had no idea why though. She could smell all of the fruit she wanted while he did everything else.

He didn't move though. He and the cart remained in the produce section as she did her thing. Finally deciding on six of the perfectly golden apples, she grabbed a twist tie and closed the bag, placing it in the cart gently. Ryan gave her a look and she smiled sweetly at him, leaning forward and brushing some of the hair off his forehead. He was growing it out again and it was beginning to get the shaggy look. She kissed the bridge of his nose then turned and went to the pears. He followed behind dutifully with the cart.

He liked this tradition they had with one another. He liked that they were in that part in their relationship where they began building and developing traditions for the both of them. Ryan wasn't sure if he had ever had this with another person he was dating. It really didn't surprise him that he had it with her though. If he was to have rituals and traditions and schedules, he was going to have it with Summer Roberts.

As if she knew he was thinking about her, she turned and smiled at him. He smiled back, almost laughing when she put a pear to her nose to smell. She was so unbelievably beautiful. He thought of the years he had known her – knowing that she was beautiful but never really seeing her like that. He stared at her and she stared back and then she smiled as if she once again could read his thoughts.

"I love you," she told him softly, reaching out and touching his cheek, before going back to pear hunting.

They went grocery shopping every Thursday night once they discovered that the store was never crowded on that particular evening.

Summer got to work out of their apartment, researching and working on her blog all day, writing about the seals or deforestation or the condition of the ozone. She was getting more and more hits every day and more environmental groups at different colleges were requesting her to come and speak to them. She was so thrilled and honored that people were reading what she had to say and taking her so seriously. She had never had people take her seriously before and Ryan knew he was lucky to be the one to see how dedicated and passionate she was to something everyday. Ryan was working with Kirsten. They were in the middle of beginning their own development group. At the moment, they were working out of the Cohen kitchen and they weren't getting nearly enough sleep but both were happy to be doing something they loved. And Kirsten was beyond ecstatic that at least one of her sons was just as passionate about the work she did as she was.

He would come back their apartment around seven o'clock and she would spin around in her chair at the desk set up in the living room and she would give him the most brilliant smile. Their apartment was small – just a little bit bigger than the pool house and their westward windows faced the ocean and beach. It didn't seem like the kind of place a girl like Summer would live in but she had changed and Ryan wondered if anyone besides him really knew who she was now. The Summer that he had fallen in love with lived in a one bedroom beachside apartment with her boyfriend and suggested that they decorate with help from Target and IKEA.

The Summer he loved was standing in the produce section of a grocery store on a weeknight with her scruffy boyfriend and she was wearing blue jeans and a white thermal shirt underneath a gray tee-shirt with her hair pulled up in a sloppy ponytail. She had changed so much from the first time he met her. Maybe that was why he fell for her. Or maybe he had fallen for her the first time he saw her and all of the changes she had gone through only showed him that no matter who she was, he would have fallen for her.

Three years had passed since Marissa's death and two year since Taylor went back to France. Seth had decided that Summer needed someone different than him around the same time. He had still been wandering aimlessly through his life, nothing striking his interests or passion and he decided that the only logical thing to do was leave Summer and go off into the world. He had always wanted to start in Tahiti and from there, he had no idea. He had broken Summer's heart but at the same time, she had felt that they were growing further apart. She couldn't hate him or even be mad at him. Seth Cohen was her first love just like Marissa had been Ryan's.

For the first time, Summer and Ryan found themselves alone together in Newport. It was natural for the two best friends to lean on each other. Ryan was missing Taylor, and a part of his heart still missed Marissa. Summer was missing Seth and admitting to herself that he had been her Jimmy Cooper - the one before the one. Now, she was stuck waiting for her Sandy Cohen.

From friendship and confidants, it was only natural for it to slowly grow into something more. Ryan helped her with her crusade to save the world and Summer helped him smile. Before they could stop it or even fully realize it, they had fallen in love. It was nothing dramatic or angst-filled. It was something that had happened and now, after being together for almost a year, both realized that this is what they had been looking for. Ryan had been searching for a girl that needed him as much as he needed her. He was tired of playing the white knight. And Summer had always been so strong willed and opinionated, he knew that she would never ask him to rescue her – not until after she tried to herself. They had fallen in love with each other and it was the most natural thing either of them had ever felt.

Natural. The word repeated itself in his head as he watched her. Summer had put the bag of pears in the cart and was now moving onto the oranges. He had no idea how she ate so much fruit in a week but she always managed. He loved that she was so petite and yet ate so much. He found it incredibly sexy to watch her chow down on a cheeseburger from In n' Out and then ask if she could have some of his.

He followed her with the cart, watching her again. It was natural for this to be happening. It was natural to be in love with her. It was healthy for love to blossom out of friendship without jealous boyfriends/husbands, insane mental patients, or pregnancy being involved. The relationship he had with Summer was the most normal thing he had ever been a part of. Their own little domestic life they were now sharing together was also one of the best things to ever happen to him. He had no idea what he would have done after Taylor and Seth left if he had not have had Summer to help him. He probably would have been in his fiftieth empty relationship instead of being with Summer, his first adult girlfriend. His first and hopefully last.

"Ryan," Summer gasped excitedly. "Berries are on sale. I could get some raspberries and blueberries and make that fruit salad you love! Should I get some blackberries too?"

He nodded his head. "Definitely. It would be nothing without the blackberries."

She laughed at that then went to go inspect the bins holding the plastic containers.

He stayed put, watching her from a distance. She was beautiful and smart and funny and for some reason, she had fallen in love with him. He knew he shouldn't have questioned it. He knew he should have just considered himself lucky and continue to pray that she would never leave him. In the two years since their friendship had grown deeper and developed into more, she had become the most important thing to him. She was his life now. And he often worried that one day, she would wake up, look at him and then leave.

It was ridiculous. He made sure to always tell himself that. For one, Summer told him she loved him a hundred more times than he told her. And even if she was just a nonverbal as he was, her smile and eyes when they looked at him were enough. The way she kissed him, the way she touched him, the way her arms wrapped around his neck perfectly – it was all natural and perfect. Not ridiculous or creepy at all. He never would have thought six years ago when he first met her that Summer Roberts would be the girl that would be for him.

"You're staring," Summer smiled, coming back to the cart, holding two containers each of kind of berry. She placed them in the cart carefully then looked at him. "What's wrong?"

He shrugged. "Nothing," he answered truthfully and Summer came around the cart to slip her arms around his waist – her front pressing into his side. She smelled like coconut shampoo and the beach. He smelled like Dial soap and sweat. He lifted his arm and circled it around her shoulders, holding her close. "Just thinking about things."

"Like?" She pressed. She knew that if she didn't ask him questions and almost force him to speak, he would remain silent. She kissed his shoulder through his tee-shirt.

Ryan looked down at her. "Like maybe you should hurry the hell up. We still have the rest of our list to get through." He laughed when Summer's mouth fell open in shock and shoved him playfully.

"Ryan Atwood!" She exclaimed and he laughed again. "You know you shouldn't rush me when it comes to fruit."

His smile faded and he nodded his head solemnly. "Yeah." He reached out and tucked a loose tendril of hair behind her hair. "I know," he said. He was feeling so grateful that he was able to know that about her. It was the little things he looked forward to finding out and knowing about her.

Summer bounced up on her toes and kissed him quickly on the lips. "I adore you."

"I know," he said with a faint smile and she kissed his cheek.

"I'm glad," she said softly, still standing up on her toes so she was even with his eyes. Then as if she really was reading his thoughts, she continued. "I'm so glad that you're the one that knows, Ryan."

He smiled then turned and kissed her forehead. "Summer, since I seem to know you so well… do you ever think about us getting married?"

"Of course I do," she smiled warmly.

She secretly looked at wedding dresses on-line sometimes when he was at work. She had been dating him for a year and had loved him longer than that. She had loved him as a friend and now she loved him as the love of her life. She knew that Ryan was her Sandy Cohen. She never would have guessed it at any earlier point in her life but now, a little bit older and a little bit wiser, she knew without question.

"But if you even think about asking me right now, in the produce section, I will have a rage blackout on you," she joked and he smirked, his eyes closing for a moment when she kissed the corner of his mouth.

He smiled down at her. He knew he was going to marry her someday. It was natural. "I know," he said and then with one more kiss, he watched her as she went off to get some grapes. He leaned his arms again on the cart's bar and sighed. He never saw himself in this spot six years earlier. It was funny how things turned out but at the same time… it seemed right. Being there, watching Summer, being with Summer, he knew it was right.

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I would love you forever if you reviewed this story for me. I did something stupid and made a bet with my friend that I could get a certain amount of reviews. Please help me out! Thank you! 


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